Also note that the new download page now includes links to download quick upgrade patches if you are already running 2.4.1 or 2.4.2. You have to scroll down though, I figured we would not want to have those displayed too high which might be confusing new users.

Upgrading from a previous 2.x version will only take you a couple of minutes. Skins from any previous 2.x version are compatible. Plugins from any 1.10.x or previous 2.x version are compatible. Version 3.0 will be an alpha release and will not be stable for a couple of months. We highly recommend you upgrade to 2.4.5. This guarantees your site is as secure as possibly be.

This version will also install a demo photoblog (as blog #4) for first time installers. If you already have b2evo running but would like to see it, check out the demo server.

2.4.5-stable "Monument Valley"

Search widget radio buttons are now optional.

New skin: GlossyBlue
(including support for default widget containers)

More skin template params

The installer now creates a demo photoblog

Enhanced backoffice display speed

More tag URL options

Enhanced URL resolution for categories and tags

Enhanced sitemaps

Fixed the bug where thumbnails are not created in skins when the viewer is not logged in

If you want to create a new one, you're welcome to do so. You might want to use an existing language pack from a previous version as a start base though. It's up to you...

Finally, language packs in 3.0 will be essentially the same except that they will include definitions for the locales they can serve in a small file called for example fr-FR.locale.php. (A 3.0 language pack can actually define several locales at ounce by including several such files.) Those files will be detected by b2evolution and imported automatically.

This should make it even easier for users to install new locales. All they'd need to do is copy the files into the locales folder and then enable the desired locale from Global Settings > Regional.

Hi everyone! Hope you all had a nice summer vacation in some nice place (even if it was just a virtual place )

I personally went through a lot of crazy adventures, not the least of them being moving from France to California... then meeting a lot of people around here! (I blogged a bit about it in French only... however I also have some photos ... in no particular order)

Also... since living in California is actually quite expensive, I figured it would help to take on some extra client work this summer, which left me less free time to work on b2evolution those last couple of months.

Fortunately, Yabba's been pretty active in the meantime and b2evolution 3.0 should be pretty yabbariffic !! All I can tell you right now is that's it's gonna be even better than AJAX!

We will most likely have a 2.4.3 service release fixing some bugs this month and then we'll move on directly to version 3.0 with some big new features! More on that later...

Also, I'll be at Blogworld Expo in Las Vegas on the 20th and 21st this month. (I still can't believe it's just an hour away from home now!) If you're going too, email me, post a comment or even ping me on twitter. I'd be delighted to meet you and talk about the evolution of b2evo...

Finally, I've been thinking about replacing that "Multilingual multiuser multiblog engine" baseline up there with "Easy as a blog, powerful as a CMS". What do you think? (or maybe this isn't even proper English... LOL)

b2evolution version 2.4.2 "Palms" is the same awesome stable version as 2.4.1 with removed bugs and added skins! It's even nicer to use as many little quirks have been ironed out and it is also nicer to look at as it has 3 additional cool skins preinstalled: Pixel Green, Terrafirma and Vastitude (All these skins are new versions for 2.4).